“The Air Force 12 Outstanding Airmen of the Year award is huge and rarely seen at the base level,” said Col. Kevin P. Cullen, 91st Security Force Group commander. “In fact, I've only met one other award winner in my entire 22-year career.” The 12 Outstanding Airmen earn the Outstanding Airman ribbon with the Bronze Service Star device and wear the Outstanding Airman badge for one year. They also serve on the Air Force Enlisted Council for one year. Wallace will be recognized with his award during the Air Force Association’s Air and Space Conference on Sept. 15, in Washington, D.C. Read more about Wallace’s award at www.minot.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123410617.

Ryberg receives National Science Foundation research grant

Patty Ryberg, Ph.D., assistant professor of biology, has been awarded a $168,000 research grant from the National Science Foundation. The grant, the first received by a Park University faculty member since 1993, will establish a paleobotanical research program at Park with a focus on Antarctic fossil plants. Students will study the critical role plants play in the Earth's environment and changing ecosystem. The NSF grant will fund new microscopes with high-resolution magnification, and it will enable up to 12 Park undergraduate students to participate in stipend research. The students will have access to thousands of Antarctic fossil plants housed at the University of Kansas in Lawrence where Ryberg maintains a research partnership following her post-doctoral fellowship.

Park's June 1993 NSF grant of $22,500 was awarded to William Pivonka, professor emeritus of chemistry; Dorothy May, Ph.D., professor emeritus of biology; Raymond Stevens, Ph.D., former associate professor of chemistry; and Tim Schoof, Ed.D., former assistant professor of chemistry and current adjunct professor of chemistry, for their "Introduction to GCMS (Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry into Laboratory Instruction Pedagogy."

Donnelli-Sallee appointed dean of Park’s College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

Emily Donnelli-Sallee, Ph.D., has been appointed dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at Park University after serving as interim dean since July 2013. Donnelli-Sallee’s appointment took effect May 1. Donnelli-Sallee joined Park University in 2004, first as the coordinator for online course development in the School for Online Learning and then as assistant professor of English in 2005. She helped found the University’s first teaching center, the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning, and the University’s first peer-reviewed academic journal, InSight: A Journal of Scholarly Teaching. In addition, Donnelli-Sallee has served as program coordinator for First-Year Writing and chair of the Department of English and Modern Languages. She was awarded the Park University Distinguished Faculty Scholar Award in 2011, an award that pays tribute to a faculty member who shows evidence of commitment to high standards of excellence in the area of scholarship: teaching, discovery, integration and/or service. Read more about Donnelli-Sallee and her responsibilities as CLAS dean at www.park.edu/news/2014/05/donnelli-sallee-clas-dean.html.

Park student-athletes earn academic all-conference honors

Park University had 46 student-athletes named to various academic all-conference teams by the American Midwest Conference, which honored student-athletes competing in spring sports among the AMC’s 12 member institutions. To be considered for the AMC’s Academic All-Conference teams, student-athletes must be in the second term of attendance at the institution and have a minimum grade point average of 3.0 as defined by the nominating institution at the time of nomination. See the list of Park student-athletes honored at www.parkathletics.com/article/300.php.

Lampton honored by alma mater for service to education

Jolene Lampton, Ph.D., assistant professor of management and accounting at Park University's Austin (Texas) Campus Center, was honored by the University of Missouri-St. Louis on May 6. Lampton was presented with the Distinguished Service to Education Award during the College of Business Administration Chapter of the UMSL Alumni Association's Salute to Business Achievement event. The event recognizes UMSL CBA alumni who have demonstrated personal and professional accomplishments to their school, profession and community.

Golf scramble to benefit Park athletics

The 2014 Park University Golf Scramble, a four-person tournament that benefits the University’s athletic programs, is scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 7, at The Deuce at The National Golf Club of Kansas City. The scramble begins with registration at 8:30 a.m., followed by a shotgun start at 10 a.m. Lunch and an awards program immediately follows the completion of the tournament at approximately 3 p.m. Tournament registration is $125 per golfer or $500 per four-person team, and includes 18 holes of golf with a cart, lunch, driving range access prior to the event, on-course games and contests, and refreshments. In addition, a variety of sponsorship packages are available, ranging in price from $1,000 to $5,000. To register for the tournament or for more information, visit www.park.edu/golf.

University to host softball camp on June 25

The Park University softball program will hold a softball camp for children on Wednesday, June 25, at the Park Softball Complex on the University’s Parkville Campus. There will be two time slots — 9 a.m. to noon for fourth through eighth graders, and noon to 3:30 p.m. for high school age students. The camp will focus on hitting and defense, led by Park head coach Amy Reif and assistant coach Steve Tingler. The cost of the camp is $40 per person, with all proceeds going toward the travel budget for the Pirates softball team. To reserve a spot, contact Reif at amy.reif@park.edu or (816) 584-6443.

Parkville Campus summer facilities projects

Park University’s Office of Facilities Services has started (or will soon start) a number of summer projects on the Parkville Campus. These include: • McAfee Memorial Library renovations will begin next week and is scheduled to continue through the end of July. Work includes new paint, carpeting, lights and restroom remodeling. As a result, the library’s staff and services will be temporarily relocated to Room 306 in the Mabee Learning Center/Academic Underground through Aug. 1. • Mabee Learning Center/Academic Underground restrooms (across from the Office of Information Technology Services and next to the entrance/exit to the Parkville Commercial Underground), are being completely renovated. This work will is scheduled to continue through mid-July. (Note that one pair of restrooms in the MLC/AU will always be available.) • 6th Street Bridge culvert liner project has started and is scheduled to be completed by mid-June. • 6th Street electrical project (phase 2), which included the MLC/AU switchgear, is significantly complete. • Construction of a road from the parking area above the President Mackenzie Underground Entrance to Observatory Hill (directly behind Mackay Hall) has started. Improvements to the area near Observatory Hill, including boring/pumping operations, will continue for several months. When the road is complete, it will also provide access to the Hemingway Field/Comfort Field area.

Park University is a private, non-profit, institution of higher learning since 1875.

Park University admits students of any race, color, national and ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national and ethnic origin in administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship and loan programs and athletic and other school-administered programs.